


Malfoy Manor

by Constellations_Of_Thoughts



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Post-War, Boggarts, Developing Friendships, F/F, F/M, Friendship, Gen, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Hogwarts Inter-House Friendships, House Cleaning, M/M, Magical Realism, Malfoy Manor, Multi, Not Canon Compliant, Not Epilogue Compliant, Other, Post-Canon Fix-It, Redeemed Draco Malfoy, Redemption, Strained Friendships, restoration work
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-07
Updated: 2020-07-15
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:34:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23530918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Constellations_Of_Thoughts/pseuds/Constellations_Of_Thoughts
Summary: After helping rebuild Hogwarts, the students return home. but Draco Malfoy has to return to an empty, broken-down house. He has built some good friendships in those few months of "serving his sentence" at Hogwarts. Now, when he needs them, they are here to help in good spirits. How will things progress? (I have included a prompt: Draco's Boggart is his father)
Relationships: ship one/ship all
Kudos: 7





	1. Draco has Friends

Draco returned to his room in the manor. The whole house had been cleaned of items both dark and otherwise. His robes lay scattered around his room the mattress of the bed upheaved unevenly and curtains torn up. The windows had been forced open as had the drawers and the wardrobe. Panels of the floor were screeching in protest and his toiletry cabinet begged for mercy. The canopy of the bed had been pulled down and some of his school books and uniforms were burnt leaving stains on the wall and a hole on the ground. Having cleaned up Hogwarts almost daily for the past few months Draco had learnt to work without the help of house elves or magic. He piled all items left over onto the bed and left the room to bring the water from the bathroom. 

The hallways were burnished with residual magic from failed spells at removing portraits and wall hangings. The empty spots that would have been clean had the manor been looked after in the past 4 months weren’t, but they still stood out from the rest of the wall which had started accumulating moss. The bathroom had a spider web large enough to become a backpack but Draco ignored it as he twisted the tap for water. All he met with was silence so he shrugged and traced his clean footsteps backwards on the floor of the dusty hallway. About halfway he found the staircase whose supports he had once used like a slide and had gotten scolded for. There was no one left to scold him now. He skipped the broken steps as he did on the way up and revelled in the sound echoing in the vast space. On the way he spotted the fireplace and got it going.

Then, he went to a corner of the manor that he knew existed but had never been to before. The well by the elf residence. He would call it an elf stable though, for that was all it was, a roof and a trough placed upside down. A ring made of blackened stones had ashes in their midst. The well had dried up halfway. He wondered if the elves used it at all. Surely they wouldn’t drink out of it? 

Startled by the titter of a bird perched on a half cut stump of a tree, he threw the bucket in and pulled out some clear water. The well must have been charmed although it had weakened over time. He felt for the magic of his ancestors, a familiar tug borrowed some of his own and got the well working again. Feeling proud of the strength he had gained from lifting rocks manually for the building, he walked easily up to the hearth. He wiped his hands onto the back of his shirt like some greasy young boy and threw some floo powder into the fire. Peeping into the green flames, he yelled-

“george?”

“Let me sleep mate, I finally have a day of rest!”

“You have an entire month to sleep now, you wanker!”

“Prick.”

“Arse.” Then, softly, draco said, “I need your help…”

George’s face emerged in lime green, “Anytime, brother”

“A’ight, pal, I don’t want pity”

“You ain’t worth my titty, let alone my pity”

“Your breast is worth less than your pity?”

“Hmph. State your cause or begone”

“The manor needs revamping and so does my room”

“More cleaning?”

“Yep!”

“The offer about the burrow still stands”

“Maybe I am too much of a snob to live in a hut after all”

“I promise you won’t be a burden”

“Bill’s beloved Veela and Miss Bushy Brows also stay there; not to mention Scarhead.”

“Well the burrow can accommodate another, besides harry is offering Bill and Fleur his house at the Grim Auld Place… and I told you, you could sleep with me”

“What a racy offer, but I must decline, partner, for I would like to sleep in the familiarity of my own room tonight”

“Draco. Fine… but you must promise to move here once Bill and Fleur shift.”

“Deal”

“Also, I’ll be getting company” and with that the flames returned to their original colour making Draco jump. He picked up the bucket and took to the stairs. He was reminded the need to practice wandless magic as he reached the second floor. He pulled out a cloth and a mop he had brought from the bathroom earlier. Wetting the mop, he started cleaning the smaller section of the hallway. The first run of the mop was magical. The wooden floor definitely looked better. He then dipped the cloth and wrung out excess water. Took a deep breath and started rubbing the panels one by one. He planned to get done with half the hallway and folding his clothes before George arrived with whatever company he deemed fit. About half an hour later, he was starting to see the woodenness of the wood. There was a vast visible difference between the two parts of the floor. From the doorway of his room, he poured water across the area he cleaned and watched with satisfaction as it dripped down a couple of stairs. He plopped down on his bed, evening the mattress and began folding the garments at an expert speed. He wondered if he could apply to be a house elf under S.P.E.W. Granger had definitely grown on him. George had warned him about it.

Draco really missed having company as he worked. He had the Slytherin boys with him the first seven years of his life and during the school restoration, George, Luna, Weaslette, Blaise, Mml. Veela, Bill, Aunt Andie and her grandson, Prof. Minnie, Horace, Hagrid, and sometimes the Golden trio kept him company. Longbottom never stayed but he quietly kept him company too. That boy was a changed man. He never spoke a word, even when Draco apologized, he only blinked and gave Draco a pat on his shoulder. Even now, the memory made his throat and heart heavy. He remembered the way Luna described her one experience meeting Mr. and Mrs. Longbottom before they passed away. The doctor had said they were recovering. But it was still so horrible, we had all cried and passed chocolates while Neville reassured us that they were making such great progress and that he had high hopes of a recovery. All that hope must have led to a greater shock than… than what? An expected death like Draco’s parents? Or of not knowing their parents like for Potter and Teddy?

Fortunately, before he started berating himself, the manor ward chimed with the arrival of his guests. Not one, not two but a company of Eight. Excited, he jumped off the bed and dashed outside. Having long forgotten about it, he slipped and landed into the puddle of water. He got up, and with a sore arse limped down the stairs. He left a trail of water from his soaked shorts dripping onto his calves. As he reached to open the humongous, creaky gates of the manor, a gust of cold wind made him gasp eliciting giggles from whom he knew to be Granger. He scowled at the door and yanked it open. The hinges came off and started falling on him. Eight protegos blasted it away from him and into the wilderness in the lawn.

“Welcome to the Grand Malfoy manor” he said noting that Pansy had returned from Paris and hadn’t informed him. He decided they might not have been that close after all.  
He turned around and walked back up the crunchy leaf covered stone path way. Someone took the liberty of drying off his pants but he felt glad not to have thanked them immediately, for Weaslette teased, “We are aware of your lovely butt, Draco, no need to show it off like that!” Potter and Blaise snorted. He could feel the smirk on George’s face. The Weasley-Granger couple laughed aloud. Luna’s magic felt like a stinging hex aimed inoffensively at Ginny. Somewhere at the back of his mind he registered the manor gulp down the remains of Ginny and Luna’s residual magic. He put cleansing the manor of magical residues on his mental checklist.

“Before you enter,” he stopped at the door, “I need to ensure that none of you will be stressed from your time here. The manor looks a lot like what Hogwarts did before restoration and I may not be able to handle some things myself. Feel free to back out at any time”

The coarse voice of Harry sounded from behind him, “we are all in this together and will look after each other. No one has been forced to be here, except maybe Ron who wanted to sleep early, so don’t you worry Draco.”

“We are all consenting adults, mate- except perhaps Ron who is a child”

“Ginny!” Complained Ron

“She isn’t wrong, I had to give up my chocolates for convincing him” added Hermione “ow!”

Ron huffed and Blaise laughed. Draco gulped hard and walked in.

“This place is in shambles! I leave you for a day and you make a mess! What will happen to you without me, oh dracy-poo?”

“Pansy. You left for over a year. Did not inform me when you left nor when you returned. You have no right making a joke out of it, or anything else for that matter!” growled Draco.

“So much for the surprise. Well, we’ll talk about this later, yes? You, me and Zabini; like the old times?”

“Whatever, Parkinson”

“She’s a guest, and here to help, Malfoy. Do not scuffle now, please?” interrupted Weasley Mr.Genius

“FINE!”

Draco turned around to fight but Luna had her wand aimed at him and her speech binding spell had rendered him silent. He exhaled and started walking towards his room. Ginny kept cleaning the water in front of him as he tried to fight Luna’s magic with his own in vain. At the door of his room, Luna let go while the group remarked at how well the floor had been cleaned.

“There is a hole in the floor, I need some help cleaning the place up as the taps are not working”

Wordlessly, several scourgifies were shot. “Aguamenti” shouted Hermione and George while Harry and Ron conjured up mops. Pansy and Blaise were already scrubbing the floor while luna quietly tidied the place. “reparo” whispered Ginny and jumped onto the spot where the hole should have been. It creaked and Draco feared she will fall through, but she reparo-ed the entire floor. She also repaired various pieces of furniture and repatched his burnt clothes and curtains. She seemed willing to recreate his books but he held her wand hand before she could.

“Don’t use strong complicated magic in the manor. It absorbs residues like a parched land.”

Pansy spoke “Must be the sudden void after the dark magic and subsequent abandonment. Sorry- I didn’t mean to bring that up”

“Pansy, Pansy with her large mouth and tiny brain… it would do you good to learn from ‘Mione” chided Blaise.  
Draco didn’t really mind, not anymore, but he didn’t tell her so. He noticed from the corner of his eye that Hermione was blushing.

“Oi, mate! I know we are on a break, but don’t you hit on ‘Mione!”

Blaise, the dramatic fool, exclaimed “Oh! how little you trust me, Ronnie! Don’t you worry, my eyes are set only on you”

Thus it was only mandatory that both, George and Ginny punched Blaise on either of his shoulders.

“Ow! Gin! That hurts!”

“You are just weak”

“Please, I am the strongest wizard in my year. It’s just you who is a brute.”

Luna giggled, “Good thing you aren’t in ours, B”

That cracked everyone up and they got back to work. Draco borrowed a soap and got scrubbing too. Soon the room was sparkling clean and George had cast an expansion spell on the bed. Tired, everyone squeezed onto the bed. Arms and legs tangled, someone grumbled “just this once, Draco, or I might kill someone” before he could figure out though, Draco was asleep.


	2. Nine Little Monkeys

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's writing without angst?

Draco woke up to shouting in a jumbled mess of limbs and blanket. There was a lot of fighting and Pansy’s shrill voice pierced his clouded mind and lifted the veil of drowsiness.

“HOW DARE YOU KICK ME OFF THE BED LIKE THAT!? NOT EVEN MY SISTER DARES DO THAT! APOLOGISE!”

Maybe someone did apologise from under a pillow but mostly everyone grunted trying to get out of bed. After a bit of struggle, Ron yelled “levicorpus” and a dishevelled Luna hung upside down before the bed.

“I understand why parrybacks hang on trees now” she remarks, “It lets you have a vantage point on those you want to attack”

“Put her down before we all die!” screams Blaise but Ginny has already whispered liberacorpus and Luna has fallen on the bed and right off. Blaise and Ginny, in perfect coordination have also pushed Ron off the bed and Draco knows this only because in a matter of seconds Draco has gone from having a soft bed underneath him to a soft Ron underneath him whose hand is still on his ankle.

“Why’d you pull him along Ron?” teased Potter and not a heartbeat later he has fallen beside them all thanks to George. Ron is muttering curses and hexes from beneath Draco and soon everyone, except Granger, is off the bed. The girl was at the bottom and, with a hive mind the rest of the company is surrounding the bed with creepy grins. Hermione wakes up mid-air and falls onto the hard floor screaming… but it doesn’t hold and she goes plummeting down through it. 

Everyone screams and Ron and Harry are already rushing down stairs. Luna’s smart idea is somehow to jump down the same hole while Draco accioes his broom and flies through, catching her. A few inches from Granger but Loony is busy firing healing spells at the injured girl. Upstairs he can hear Blaise still screaming while Pansy… Draco can feel it. Pansy’s magic being sucked out of her. Sure enough George yells out her name and Blaise lets out another high pitched scream. Ginny, who had transfigured the nearest pillow into a broom and followed the two Gryffindor boys zooms right back her path down and brings Pansy to the Ground floor. Luna fires some more healing spells and George and Blaise find their way down the steps weakly. 

Once everyone had eaten the Crêpes the redheads brought over and settled comfortably onto a sofa, chaise or broom before the fireplace, George speaks up, 

“This place desperately needs two things. A renovation,” he pauses and looks at Hermione and then turns to Pansy “and a cleansing Ritual”.

“The cleansing should take place after the renovation” states Hermione

Ron nods and crouches to run a hand on the floor. It leaves a clean mark on the floor and he dusts them off. “I agree, I just tried to push a cushioning charm onto the floor. It drank up my magic and nothing happened. But if you paid attention, only the floor absorbed it… not the whole manor. We should renovate this place first and burn anything that is absorbing magic. Besides, the land doesn’t need much cleansing.” 

“Won’t it be difficult to cast spells while working?” asks Potty

“No magic then, Potter. Magic is now prohibited in the Manor” Draco commands.

“Don’t rush your decisions, Draco” Ginny stands. “We can work things out as we go”

“Yeah, baby steps. Let’s do your room and we’ll work it up from there.” Luna supplies

“My house my rules, mates. Don’t use magic, or ill have you thrown out”

“You are in a position where we can throw you out of here and lock you into the burrow, alright?” threatened Ginny, and Malfoy had no way to respond to that

“He’s right, you know, Gin… we really should avoid using magic for now” reasoned Blaise

“Besides, having accidents here will reflect poorly on Malfoy” interjected George

Silence ensued.

“Let’s listen to Luna and start with your room for now” Pans- y. Pansy. Interrupted.

“YOU DON’T GET TO- MMF MFF MMMMMF” Luna and her damn scarves. Draco puffed out loud and pushed the scarf away. “MERLIN’S BALLS LUNA!”

Hermione immediately shushed him “Draco, calm down. Listen to her when she’s right?”

“WHEN IS SHE EVER RIGHT? NEVER! SHE HAS BEEN NOTHING BUT A LIAR, A FAKE FRIEND, A HORRIBLE COWARD AND A TRAITOR!” Draco’s words were a vent to his frustration and anger. He felt good saying them, so he went on “I REGRET FATHER EVER BROUGHT YOU IN MY LIFE LIKE HE DID THE WAR, I REGRET HAVING MET YOU!!!!!!!!”

No sooner had he uttered those words that Blaise slapped him. It stung like dragon nettle. Draco started off towards his bedroom, slipping a little as the world blurred from tears. He did not miss pansy running off to a side though. Good for her, she learnt her lesson. He sped up the stairs and threw himself onto his bed, letting the pillow absorb the wetness of his eyes.

Sometime later the bed to his side dipped a bit and Harry’s voice sounded,

“Draco? I know you are upset, mate. But you need to talk it out with her later. She went through some difficult things and so did you. She left for now, but she’ll return tomorrow. Blaise and George left with her. The girls are still distressed over your behaviour. To be truthful, so am I; but I know where this is coming from. How about we have lunch, fix the floors and then think this through together?”

“We’ll just fix the floors and not talk about this?”

“If that’s what you wish?”

Draco hummed and got off the bed. As he rummaged for his tools, Harry started examining the wreckage. 

“Mione!” He called out “how did you manage to fall through this? It’s 4 inches thick!”

“-and a few millennia old!” she shot back.

“We need a little help here, girls! Care to join us?” the question was met with silence. 

At least Draco didn’t hear is reply, but soon the remnants of the restoration party joined the room. They ate together and then worked quietly and at first Draco was grateful for the silence, but soon it grew awkward and uncomfortable. Every unsaid word echoed in the noise of the pulled panels and hammered nails. By the time Draco had finished taking out all wooden boards he had tears streaming down his cheeks. Luna was the first to notice. She offered a smile and looked away. 

It hurt until she said, “I hate the pain you’re feeling. Tell me what happened on your side that you acted the way you did.” And then it hurt more. He turned to harry who looked concerned and gulped.

“Pansy was my first friend. We met each other at one of my parents’ extravagant soirées. She held her nose high up in the air and behind their backs she pranked everyone. Never got caught.” But his voice did at that. He cleared his throat and continued with his cracked voice. “She rode the broom with me and was just an inch taller than me. It’s why she calls-“ he gulped “called me Dracy-“ “she called me Dracy-poo.”

“Mm-hmm?” Ginny encouraged

“In sixth year, she knew everything that was going on in my life. She cried with me after I got the dark mark.” He glanced at it and rubbed the skin that once burned upon being summoned. “She promised me that night to never get involved in the dark arts and to stay by my side until I was thrown into Azkaban. And then she was to tell the world the atrocities faced by children of death eaters and the way we only acted in self-preservation.” He grit his teeth, “I did believe her, until one day I caught her throwing crucios at some of the prisoners.” He faced Luna apologetically, “Remember Mr Ollivander?”

He argued his point. She shuddered and stopped working. After a deep breath she got right back onto the task of pulling the carpet. “He said it was Bellatrix.”

Draco shook his head. “I saw it. It was Pansy.”

Luna shook her head too. ”It was as much Pansy as it was you taking the dark mark.”

“But I did take it.”

“I met her on her last round. She had tears in her eyes as she shot the spell at Mr Ollivander. It barely stung him. When she aimed at me, her wand was shaking. She turned it on herself at the time. Her screams echoed in the chamber but she didn’t stop. She was taking her penance. Fifteen minutes of it. We tried to stop her, but she wouldn’t stop. You’d think one would pass out from fifteen minutes of the spell. She did collapse but stood up again.” Luna’s eyes locked with Draco’s. “Blood dripped out of her nose and mouth. Her breathing sounded ragged and her voice cracked when she spoke-'Stay here and act as if you were hit with the spell'. And then ‘Mione was screaming upstairs, I-“

At that, Hermione too shuddered and sobbed. Ron got up to comfort her and harry took to rocking himself. Ginny, who was near Luna pulled her into an embrace and Draco froze up. Then he began again.

“And then she ran away to Paris and I only learnt that after a few months when Blaise told me. And one day, she turned up at my house unannounced, having made friends with my friends without me noticing despite having been with them most of the time.” Finished Draco.

Ron glared at him. “What was she supposed to do mate? Come crying to the boy whose parents had threatened to kill her and her family if they proved themselves innocent or testified against the Malfoys? Or come crying to the boy who would testify against her? Or to the boy whose parents threatened he would be the one killing her and her family?”

“She fire-called us daily and sent money and food for everyone who was in the dungeons. She is the only one Neville speaks to these days. She even sends flowers to each grave from either side of the battle.” Added Ginny and left Luna by herself to continue working. Looking at her everyone picked up the pace and before another spoke, the floor was ready for lacquering. 

“You wouldn’t give her a chance to speak. She wanted to explain this by herself. There may still be some things she wants to tell you that she was reluctant to tell us.” Mione said quietly.

“You’ll talk to her when she returns tomorrow right?” harry tipped the bucket of lacquer over and more sobs escaped Draco. 

Hermione and Ron ushered him out. At the door of the room, he reasoned,

“So I’ll be calling you Dracy-poo forever, huh?”

eliciting some giggles and a few sobs from Draco who leaned into a firm hug Ron offered. They waited by the sofa and Ron soothingly ran his hands through Draco’s hair even as Mione snuggled into his shoulder and closed her eyes. Ron shifted and squirmed into a comfortable posture.


End file.
